Chapter 5 - The Christmas Miracle
I woke up to the sound of tiny, frantic footsteps slapping against the hardwood floor.
I opened my eyes. The morning sun was pouring through the windows, blindingly bright against the fresh snow. Cassandra was still asleep beside me in the massive king-sized bed, her head resting on my chest.
“Mama! Mama, look!”
Luke burst into the bedroom, dragging a massive stuffed grizzly bear by its ear. Violet was right behind him, clutching a brand-new electronic tablet that was playing a cheerful jingle.
Cassandra stirred, blinking sleepily before a massive, radiant smile broke across her face.
I sat up, pulling the down comforter around us. “Good morning, monsters,” I laughed, my chest expanding with a joy so absolute it felt like I was breathing pure oxygen.
Luke stopped, staring at me with wide green eyes. “The angry man is in Mama’s bed.”
“I’m not angry anymore, Luke,” I smiled, holding my arms out. “And my name is Damon. But you can call me Dad, if you want to.”
The little boy dropped the bear and scrambled up onto the mattress, throwing his arms around my neck. Violet giggled, climbing up on the other side and burying her face in Cassandra’s shoulder.
For the first time in my thirty-four years of life, my hands were entirely full. I didn't need a stock portfolio. I didn't need a corporate empire. I had the entire universe sitting right here on a hotel mattress in Denver.
Later that morning, amidst a sea of shredded wrapping paper and the joyful chaos of toddlers on a sugar high, I pulled Cassandra toward the floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the snow-covered mountains.
I reached into my pocket. I didn't have a ring. I hadn't had time to buy one, and a diamond didn't feel big enough for the promise I needed to make.
Instead, I pulled out a folded piece of paper. It was the deed to the Prescott Technologies corporate tower.
“I spent my whole life building a legacy for a ghost,” I told her softly, taking her hands in mine. “But I don't want to be a billionaire CEO anymore. I want to be a husband. I want to be a father.”
Cassandra looked at the paper, her breath catching in her throat.
“I’m transferring controlling interest of the company into a blind trust for Luke and Violet,” I continued, my voice thick with emotion. “I’m stepping down. I want to build a house in the mountains. I want to make pancakes on Sunday mornings, and I want to watch my children grow up. I want you, Cassandra. Forever.”
Tears streamed down her beautiful face. She didn't look at the deed. She looked directly into my soul.
May you like
“Yes,” she sobbed happily, throwing her arms around my neck. “Yes, Damon. Absolutely yes.”
I pulled her into a sweeping, breathtaking kiss as our children shrieked with laughter in the background, chasing each other around the glittering Christmas tree. The storm of the past was finally over, buried beneath the beautiful, blinding white snow of a brand new beginning.
